' Well, foresight if you like.'
' But if she falls in love with some one else ? '
' One must not let it come to that; but even if she were so misguided, with a little skill one might cool down her feelings.'
' Is it possible ? is it in your power? '
' Very much so.'
' All deceived husbands would have done so,' said Alex-andr, ' if there were any means.'
' Not all husbands are alike, my dear boy : some are very indifferent to their wives; they don't pay attention to what is going on around them and they don't care to notice it; others would be ready to from vanity, but are poor creatures; they don't know how to set to work.'
' How will you set to work ? '
'That's my secret; one could not instil it into you; you are in delirium.'
Piotr Ivanitch was silent, and went on writing.
' But what a life!' began Alexandr; ' not to forget yourself, but always to be thinking—thinking—no, I feel this is not so! I want to live without your cold analysis, not thinking whether trouble and danger are awaiting me hereafter or not, it's all the same ! Why should I think of it beforehand and poison '
'Why! I have often told you why, but he always comes back to his same point. Because when you foresee danger, obstacles, trouble, then you can more easily oppose them or endure them; you will not go out of your mind; you won't die; and when pleasure comes, you won't
be dancing about and smashing busts—is it clear ? One tells him—here this is the beginning, look at it, and judge by it of the end; but he covers his eyes and turns away his head just as though it were some bogy, and goes on living like a child. You would say—live day by day, as men lived sitting at their cottage doors, reckon your life by dinners, dances, love, and unchanging friendship. Always wanting the golden age! I have told you already that with your ideas it's well to stay in the country with your good lady and half-a-dozen children, but here one must work at a business ; this means that you must incessantly be thinking and remembering what you did yesterday, what you are doing to-day, so as to know what you must do to-morrow— that is to say, you must live with never-flagging control of yourself and your occupations. It is only in this way we
can attain to anything practical; and so But what's
the good of arguing with you—you are delirious for the present? Ah! it's just on the hour. Not a word more, Alexandr; go away, I will not listen; dine with me tomorrow; there will be some few people.'
' Friends of yours ? '
« Y es —KonerT, Smirnoff, Fedoroff—you know them, and some few besides.'
'Koneff, Smirnoff, Fedoroff! But these are the very people you have to do with in business.'
' Why, yes; these are all indispensable people.'
'So these are your friends? Certainly I have never observed that you received any one with special warmth.'
' I have told you before that I consider as friends those whom I associate with oftenest, from whom I gain either profit or pleasure. I dare say ! Would you have me feed them for nothing ? '
'But I thought before your marriage you would take leave of your true friends, whom you love from your heart, with whom you would talk for the last time of your gay youth over the wine-cup, and whom, perhaps, you would press warmly to your heart on your separation.'
' There, five of your words contain nothing that exists, or at least ought to exist, in life. With what transports your aunt would have thrown herself on your neck ! Of course there are ' true friends' wherever there is simply friendship and a * wine cup' whenever one is drinking out of bottles
F
and glasses, and embraces on separation when there is no separation at all. Oh, Alexandr!'
' Don't you feel regret at being separated, or at least seeing less of these friends ? ' said Alexandr.
' No ! I never was so intimate with any one as to regret them, and I advise you to follow my example.'
'So you will be here to-morrow?'
' To-morrow, uncle, I '
' What ? '
' I am invited to a country-house.'
' The Lubetzkys, I suppose.'
'Yes!'
' Ah! well, as you like. Don't forget your work, Alexandr; I shall tell the editor how you are spending your time.'
' Oh, uncle, how can you! I will finish my abstract from the German economists without fail.'
' First you had better read them. See, remember, don't come to me for ' contemptible money' as soon as you have quite given yourself up to ' soft emotions.'
i u
CHAPTER IV
Alexandr's life was divided into two halves. His official duties consumed the morning. He burrowed about in dusty deeds, pondered over facts in no way concerning himself, and reckoned on paper millions of money that did not belong to him. But at times his head refused to think for others, the pen dropped out of his hand and he was possessed by the 'soft emotions' which made Piotr Ivanitch so angry.
Then Alexandr leant over the back of his chair and was carried in thought to a grassy peaceful place, where there were no papers, nor ink, nor strange faces, nor uniforms, where peace, sweetness, and freshness reigned, where in the luxurious drawing-room there was the sweet scent of flowers, and the sounds of a piano and a parrot hopping in his cage, and in the garden the waving branches of birch-trees and bushes of lilac. And the queen of all this— She.
In the morning, Alexandr, while he sat in his office, was present unseen in one of the islands, in the country villa of the Lubetzky's, but in the evening he was present visibly in his tangible person. Let us cast an indiscreet glance at his happiness.
It was a hot day, one of the few in Petersburg; the sun, which gave life to the fields, seemed to kill the streets in Petersburg, made the granite red-hot with its rays, and the rays, reflected from the stone, scorched the people. The people walked slowly, hanging their heads, the dogs with their tongues lolling out. The town was like one of those towns of story, in which everything has changed to stone at some magician's sign. No carriages rattled on the flags; the windows were covered with awnings like eyelids closed over eyes; the wooden pavement polished like paraquet; it burnt the foot to step on it. All around was weary, asleep.
The pedestrian wiping the sweat from his face made for the shade. Stage coaches with six passengers slowly crawled into the town, scarcely stirring up the dust after them. At four o'clock the government clerks came out from their offices and slowly plodded off to their homes.
Alexandr rushed out, as though the roof of the house was falling in, looked at his watch—it was late; he would not be in time for dinner. He flung himself into a restaurant
' What have you got, quick !'
' Soup julienne and k la reine; sauce k la provengale, k la maitre d'hotel; roast turkey, game, &c, sweet souffle.'
'Well, soup h la provencale, sauce julienne, and roast souffle', only be quick! '
The waiter looked at him.
' Well, what is it ? ' said Alexandr, impatiently.
The man hurried off and gave him what he thought fit Adouev) seemed very content. He did not wait for a quarter of the dishes and hurried off to a wharf of the Neva, and here a boat and two boatmen awaited him.
Within an hour he was in sight of the place of his hopes; hestood up in the boat and bent his gaze on the distance. Atfirst his eye was dimmed with anxiety and uneasiness, which passed into doubt. Then suddenly his face brightened with the light of happiness, like a beam of sunlight. He
distinguished a well-known dress at the garden fence; then he was recognised, a handkerchief was waved to him. He had been waited for perhaps a long time. His feet seemed burning with impatience.
' Ah! if only one could walk on the water!' thought Alexandr; ' they invent all sorts of silly things, and they don't invent that!' The boatmen plied the oars slowly, evenly like a machine. The sweat stood in drops on their
